Now that you have already had or are about to have your fantasy football draft you will need to balance the need to pick with your brain and the urge to pick with your heart. Luckily this year unlike many others, our Chicago Bears have some viable offensive fantasy options. Whether you are playing for money, pride or both you should read further to find who of your favorite Bears can lead you to victory.
All of the options below are only ones that I see worthwhile for this 2009 season, they are listed from most to least relevant.
Matt Forte: I took Forte with the 4th overall pick in my draft on Saturday; I see big things ahead for this impressive sophomore barring injury. There were a few fantasy concerns on Forte coming off his stellar rookie year, Cutler will turn the Bears into a pass happy offense and that Forte accounted for 36% of the Bears offense last year so there are some concerns with durability as well. I think Forte will be benefited by Cutler, his arm should dictate that teams don’t stack 8 in the box like much of last season and with no true number 1 wide out Forte should see a healthy amount of passes as well. All in all Forte is the best option of any Bear to lead your fantasy team in 2009.
Greg Olsen: 2009 should be the breakout year for Olsen; everything is looking up, even his relationship with Jay Cutler. Olsen will be the starting tight end for the first time in his career and his numbers should improve drastically with Cutlers ability to extend plays and find the open Tight End down the middle of the field. There is no doubt that teams try to call plays that put their stars in good places to succeed, look for Cutler to find Olsen 70+ times resulting in 6 or more scores this season.
Jay Cutler: I will say that there is no way Cutler will come close to his 4,500 yards that he put up last season but if he makes the right decision more often than not his arm will be able to make the throw. I have concerns that his decision-making is too much like that that other gunslinger we saw in Green bay for over a decade. Jay can make throws Orton could not but I think I will be wishing for Orton’s decision making at times this year. Cutler should also be able spread the ball around to Forte, Olsen, Hester, and Bennett among others. Cutler should be good for well over 3,200 yards resulting in 25 touchdowns. His mobility will cut down on deducted points for sacks in many standard leagues. Cutler should be a starter in standard 10+ team leagues.
Devin Hester: I must say that I have not been too impressed with Hester this preseason, it seems that he can’t become the total package combining his deep threat ability with a possession receivers ability to move the chains. In many leagues there are bonuses for long touchdown catches and that is where Hester becomes relevant in the fantasy landscape. Devin can get to the 60+ catch mark but it depends on how many yards and TD’s come with those catches. Nevertheless, his deep threat ability cannot be overlooked when drafting receivers in the late rounds.
Chicago Defense: There has been a lot of speculation surrounding the Bears D, last season put a lot of doubt into people’s minds if they can revert to a shadow of the 2006 D. What makes their D relevant this year is that special teams is part of the Defensive scoring in many league formats. Dave Toub, the bears special teams coach has built a solid group that has ranked in the top 5 since 2006. Daniel Manning and Devin Hester make up the premiere return tandem in the NFL and those kickoff and punt returns that can be back breakers. Overall: the D won’t be terrible but they wont be great either, the Bears go up against some weak Offenses this season in the Lions (twice) and the Browns, Bengals, 49ers, and Seahawks making them a viable option more often than not in 2009.
Robbie Gould: Normally I try to stay away from kickers who play in bad weather cities but Gould has established his place among the fantasy relevant kickers in past seasons. Look for the Bears to score more points with Cutler this season and to get into field goal range more often giving Gould more opportunities to help your team.
Bears fans should be happy considering that we can draft with our heads and hearts and not just the D like in previous seasons. Forte and Olsen are no-brainer starters in all league formats with the others I mentioned becoming matchup decisions every week. Good luck.
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